Heirloom Tomatoes - Brandywine

In the last couple of years I have heard all about Heirloom Tomatoes.  I remember watching the Martha Stewart Show sometime ago and was intrigued by these funky shaped but beautiful tomatoes.  I kinda put them at the back of my head until my friend Jen told me about the plant she bought.  I could just imagine my ears perking up when she told me where to get them.  The next day I drove to the nursery and bought myself a plant.  The plant was 4 feet tall and had several green globes on them.  I only paid $15 for the plant.  I have had several tomatoes off of the plant.  Boy they are juicy, sweet and delicious.

Mini Meatball Subs

Every week I make a dinner menu for that week.  Last week The Pioneer Women had a recipe for mini meatball subs on her webpage.  When I saw the picture I knew that would go on the menu.  I did not use her recipe just the idea. 

I actually just threw some ingredients (normal ones for meatballs) into the bowl, formed them and started to brown them up.  They ended up to be about 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter.

The sauce I had made and had in the freezer.  So I just dumped that into the pan to warm up with the meatballs. 

To top the sandwiches off I slice some fresh mozzarella ontop of the hot sauce and meatballs.  Man were they messy.

Spicy Italian Pork Cutlets

I am a big fan of pork roast.  I tend to make them the same way lately and wanted to try something different.  I sat down at the computer and searched for recipes.  After a while I decided on a few different ones and printed them.  Luckily I had all the ingredients for the different recipes. 

I picked a Spicy Pork Roast recipe since I had some tomatoes I needed to use.  As I was prepping the ingredients I was thinking this recipe sounded familiar.  After looking at the ingredients closer I realized it is almost the same as my Ravioli Pomodaro recipe.  I will say the pork wasn't nearly as spicy as the ravioli recipe. 

We all liked this recipe and I would definitely make it again.  It was such an easy recipe to make.

Spicy Italian Pork Cutlets

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided

4 boneless pork chops, pounded to 1/4 inch thick

salt and pepper to taste

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 large tomato, diced

1/3 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup dry white wine

3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions

1.Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper, and quickly sear on both sides. Remove from heat, and set aside.

2.Heat the remaining olive oil in the skillet over medium-high heat, and saute the garlic about 30 seconds. Mix in the tomato, chicken broth, wine, parsley, and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes.

3.Return the pork chops to the skillet, and continue cooking 5 to 10 minutes, to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F (70 degrees C). Serve pork with the tomato and broth mixture from the skillet.

Cream Cheese and Pecan Stuffed Berries

I love watching the Food Network, if you haven't already figured that out.  I happened to have caught Paula Deen cooking with her son Jamie on tv one day.  One particular recipe jumped out at me ~ Cream Cheese Filled Berries.  They looked absolutely delicious.  I did make one change to the recipe, I used Marscapone cheese instead of the cream cheese.  Oh I lied, I didn't have any pecans so I used walnuts.

The night I made these little gems we had my sister in law Kathy and her husband over for dinner & a dip in the pool.  Everyone thought the were delicious and could not guess what the filling was. 

Cream Cheese and Pecan Stuffed Berries

Ingredients

20 whole large strawberries, hulled

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup confectioners' powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
2/3 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each strawberry so the berries stand upright. Place berries, cut side down, on a serving platter. Carefully cut the berries into 4 wedges, cutting almost to, but not through, the bottoms with a criss-cross cut. Fan wedges just slightly, taking care not to break them. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until combined but still stiff. Using a teaspoon or pastry bag with decorative tip, fill the strawberries with the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle chopped pecans on top of the stuffed strawberries. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Fresh Lettuce

As you may know I have a small raised garden bed in my backyard.  This year we thought we would try some "fancy" lettuce blend.  I really don't know what type of lettuce are in bunches but they sure are pretty. 

Yesterday I cut some of the lettuce back to have for a salad with tonight's dinner.  While rinsing the lettuce I decided to try a piece of each kind.  There was one that I liked and the other two were on the bitter side.  I'm sure with all the other fixin's I will not taste the bitterness as much as by itselft. 

I'm really excited that the garden is starting to show some flowers and growth.  I was starting to wonder if any of the plants would survive the cold snap we had a few weeks ago.  While I was looking around the garden I noticed my broc had some florets showing.  I can not wait for that.

Barefoot Bloggers - Grilled Herbed Shrimp

For our second recipe of May 2010, Penny of Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen picked a wonderful Grilled Herbed Shrimp recipe. 

I hardly ever cook shrimp since the boys aren't big fans of it.  My husband and I really liked this recipe.  I thought the shrimp were nicely marinated.  The pain of the whole recipe was peeling the shrimp.  For this recipe I served it over a nice fresh garden salad. 

I will make this recipe again but cut it in half.  Thank you Penny for a wonderful choice.

Grilled Herbed Shrimp

Ingredients

2 pounds large shrimp (16 to 20 per pound), peeled and deveined (see note)

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium yellow onion, small-diced

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1/4 cup minced fresh basil

1 teaspoon dry mustard

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup good olive oil

1 lemon, juiced

Directions

Combine all the ingredients and allow them to marinate for 1 hour at room temperature or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Skewer the shrimp. I use 3 or 4 shrimp on a 12-inch skewer for dinner. Heat a grill with coals and brush the grill with oil to prevent the shrimp from sticking. Grill the shrimp for only 1 1/2 minutes on each side.

Note: I leave the tails on when I'm peeling the shrimp.

Barefoot Bloggers - Spring Green Risotto

I have to say I have grown to love risotto.  I love the creaminess of it.  I like the idea of all the different ingredients you can put in it.  I enjoy making risotto even though you have to stand there and babysit it.  My boys don't really care for risotto.  One will eat it one way and the other one definitely doesn't like lemon.

Spring Green Risotto by Ina Garten 

Ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoons good olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (2 leeks)

1 cup chopped fennel

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
2/3 cup dry white wine
4 to 5 cups simmering chicken stock, preferably homemade
1 pound thin asparagus
10 ounces frozen peas, defrosted, or 1 1/2 cups shelled fresh peas
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese, preferably Italian
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
3 tablespoons minced fresh chives, plus extra for serving

Directions

Heat the olive oil and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the leeks and fennel and saute for 5 to 7 minutes, until tender. Add the rice and stir for a minute to coat with the vegetables, oil, and butter. Add the white wine and simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until most of the wine has been absorbed. Add the chicken stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring almost constantly and waiting for the stock to be absorbed before adding more. This process should take 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut the asparagus diagonally in 1 1/2-inch lengths and discard the tough ends. Blanch in boiling salted water for 4 to 5 minutes, until al dente. Drain and cool immediately in ice water. (If using fresh peas, blanch them in boiling water for a few minutes until the starchiness is gone.)

When the risotto has been cooking for 15 minutes, drain the asparagus and add it to the risotto with the peas, lemon zest, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Continue cooking and adding stock, stirring almost constantly, until the rice is tender but still firm.

Whisk the lemon juice and mascarpone together in a small bowl. When the risotto is done, turn off the heat and stir in the mascarpone mixture plus the Parmesan cheese and chives. Set aside, off the heat, for a few minutes, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve hot with a sprinkling of chives and more Parmesan cheese.